Volleyball is a team sport played by two teams of six players separated by a net. The objective is to ground the ball on the opponent's court using hands or arms to hit the ball over the net. Volleyball has been part of the Summer Olympics since 1964. Key techniques include spiking, blocking, passing, setting, and specialized positions. The game originated in 1895 as an indoor pastime created by William G. Morgan.

1. Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each
team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.[1] It has
been a part of the official program of the Summer Olympic Games since 1964.
causing the ball to touch the ground outside the opponents' court or without first passing over the
net;
catching and throwing the ball;
double hit: two consecutive contacts with the ball made by the same player;
four consecutive contacts with the ball made by the same team.
net foul: touching the net during play.
foot fault: the foot crosses over the boundary line when serving
The ball is usually played with the hands or arms, but players can legally strike or push (short contact)
the ball with any part of the body.
A number of consistent techniques have evolved in volleyball, including spiking and blocking (because
these plays are made above the top of the net, the vertical jump is an athletic skill emphasized in the
sport) as well as passing, setting, and specialized player positions and offensive and defensive
structures.
Origin of volleyball
On February 9, 1895, in Holyoke, Massachusetts (USA), William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical
education director, created a new game called Mintonette as a pastime to be played (preferably)
indoors and by any number of players. The game took some of its characteristics
from tennis and handball. Another indoor sport, basketball, was catching on in the area, having been
invented just ten miles (sixteen kilometers) away in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, only four
years before. Mintonette was designed to be an indoor sport, less rough than basketball, for older
members of the YMCA, while still requiring a bit of athletic effort.
The first rules, written down by William G Morgan, called for a net 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) high, a 25×50 ft
(7.6×15.2 m) court, and any number of players. A match was composed of nine innings with three
serves for each team in each inning, and no limit to the number of ball contacts for each team before
sending the ball to the opponents’ court. In case of a serving error, a second try was allowed. Hitting
the ball into the net was considered a foul (with loss of the point or a side-out)—except in the case of
the first-try serve.
The court
A volleyball court is 18 m (59 ft) long and 9 m (29.5 ft) wide, divided into 9 m × 9 m halves by a one-
meter (40-inch) wide net. The top of the net is 2.43 m (7 ft 11 5/8 in) above the center of the court for
men's competition, and 2.24 m (7 ft 4 1/8 in) for women's competition, varied for veterans and junior
competitions.
serve
A player stands behind the inline and serves the ball, in an attempt to drive it into the opponent's court.
His or her main objective is to make it land inside the court; it is also desirable to set the ball's
direction, speed and acceleration so that it becomes difficult for the receiver to handle it properly. A

2. serve is called an "ace" when the ball lands directly onto the court or travels outside the court after
being touched by an opponent.
In contemporary volleyball, many types of serves are employed:
Underhand: a serve in which the player strikes the ball below the waist instead of tossing it up and
striking it with an overhand throwing motion. Underhand serves are considered very easy to
receive and are rarely employed in high-level competitions.
Sky ball serve: a specific type of underhand serve occasionally used in beach volleyball, where
the ball is hit so high it comes down almost in a straight line. This serve was invented and
employed almost exclusively by the Brazilian team in the early 1980s and is now considered
outdated. In Brazil, this serve is called Jornada nas Estrelas (Star Trek).
Topspin: an overhand serve where the player tosses the ball high and hits it with a wrist span,
giving it topspin which causes it to drop faster than it would otherwise and helps maintain a
straight flight path. Topspin serves are generally hit hard and aimed at a specific returner or part
of the court. Standing topspin serves are rarely used above the high school level of play.
Float: an overhand serve where the ball is hit with no spin so that its path becomes unpredictable,
akin to a knuckleball in baseball.
Jump serve: an overhand serve where the ball is first tossed high in the air, then the player makes
a timed approach and jumps to make contact with the ball, hitting it with much pace and topspin.
This is the most popular serve amongst college and professional teams.
Jump float: an overhand serve where the ball is tossed high enough that the player may jump
before hitting it similarly to a standing float serve. The ball is tossed lower than a topspin jump
serve, but contact is still made while in the air. This serve is becoming more popular amongst
college and professional players because it has a certain unpredictability in its flight pattern